Dave Riggert – Page 623 – St. Joseph Post Archive

Martinez, Cardinals shut out Milwaukee in series opener

Posted on April 25, 2015

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Carlos Martinez likes pitching in Miller Park, and it shows.

Martinez struck out eight in seven innings, Jason Heyward and Jhonny Peralta homered, and the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Milwaukee Brewers 3-0 Friday night.

“I feel good in this stadium,” the 23-year-old Martinez said through a translator. “I like the mound.”

Martinez (2-0) gave up four hits and walked two in the longest of his 11 career starts. The right-hander has a 2.04 ERA in eight road games against the Brewers, with 19 strikeouts in 17 2/3 innings.

“I don’t know what it is about Milwaukee, but he’s bouncing and jumping all over the place. He was a little higher energy than we’ve seen,” Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said. “He had a very live fastball today and I thought he used his other stuff effectively, but his fastball was the story.”

Martinez has won each of his last two starts while lowering his ERA to 1.35 for the season.

“He’s attacking the hitters, putting them away with that slider, with that changeup,” catcher Yadier Molina said.

Jordan Walden pitched the eighth and Trevor Rosenthal finished for his seventh save in seven tries, completing a five-hitter.

Heyward belted a solo shot off Matt Garza in the third, lifting St. Louis to a 2-0 lead. Peralta homered leading off the sixth.

Garza (1-3) allowed seven hits in six innings while striking out a season-high six.

Milwaukee has dropped nine of 10. At 3-14, the Brewers have the worst record in the majors.

The Brewers threatened in the third, but were hurt by poor baserunning.

Garza led off with his fourth career walk and advanced to second on Jean Segura’s single. As Gerardo Parra squared to bunt, Garza broke for third. Initially ruled safe, Garza was called out after a review. Parra then struck out and Segura was caught stealing.

Molina’s run-scoring groundout got St. Louis on the board in the second, but the six-time All-Star left in the fifth in what the team said was a precautionary move. Molina was in pain after a foul tip struck him in the knee guard in the fourth. He is day to day.

Molina took a foul ball off the same knee last week.

“I was feeling better and boom, tonight I get hit again in the same spot,” he said. “He got me on the muscle. It’s just a big bruise.”

CAUGHT STEALING

Entering Friday night’s game, Molina, known for his strong arm, had only thrown out one attempted base stealer. Then he cut down two baserunners in in the third inning.

“I was excited. It’s been a while,” Molina said. “I feel good to get the outs.”

TRAINER’S ROOM

Cardinals: OF Peter Bourjos returned after being on paternity leave for three days. His wife, Ashley, gave birth to a son, Maxton. Infielder Dean Anna was optioned to Triple-A Memphis to clear a roster spot for Bourjos.

Brewers: OF Carlos Gomez continues to make progress in recovering from a right hamstring injury. He is on the 15-day disabled list. “He’s hitting again out on the field. He ran on the treadmill,” manager Ron Roenicke said. “Hopefully, it’ll be those 15 days or just a couple added onto that.”

UP NEXT

Cardinals: Adam Wainwright (2-1, 1.71 ERA) took the loss against the Brewers in St. Louis’ home opener on April 13. He is 12-8 with a 2.37 ERA in 31 career games versus the Brewers.

Brewers: Wily Peralta (0-2, 5.68 ERA) will make his second start of the season against St. Louis. He is 4-5 with a 4.58 ERA in 10 career starts against the Cardinals, but went 3-1 with a 2.18 ERA in five starts against them last season.

— Associated Press —

Western tennis falls to No. 19 Southwest Baptist in MIAA tournament opener

Posted on April 25, 2015

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – The Missouri Western women’s tennis team faced off against #19 Southwest Baptist on Friday morning at the MIAA tournament but fell short in a 5-1 loss. The Griffons entered the tournament as the seventh seed and SBU came in as the second seed.

Denise Chiao and Ceara Boldridge pulled out an 8-3 victory in the No. 3 doubles spot over Zorana Jovanovic and Beatrix Federer. The Griffons fell 8-5 in the No. 1 singles match and 8-1 in the No. 2 singles match.

Southwest Baptist finished the Griffons off by claiming the first three singles matches. Sarah Giraldo fell 6-1, 6-1 to Fanni Varga in the No. 1 singles match. Christina Zentai defeated the Griffons Sofia Aguliera in the No. 2 singles match 6-1, 6-1. The final singles match featured senior Kayla Dysart and Maria Zehnder, ending 6-1, 6-3 in favor of SBU.

The Bearcats moved into the semifinals and will face the winner of third seed Northwest Missouri and sixth seed Central Oklahoma on Saturday, April 25.

Missouri Western finishes the season with an 11-10 overall record and a 4-6 MIAA record.

Singles competition
1. Varga,Fanni (SBU) def. Giraldo,Sarah (MWSU) 6-1, 6-1
2. Zentai,Christina (SBU) def. Aguilera,Sofia (MWSU) 6-1, 6-1
3. Zehnder,Maria Josie (SBU) def. Dysart,Kayla (MWSU) 6-1, 6-3
4. Tuemmers,Lani (SBU) vs. El Ghazi,Yasmine (MWSU) unfinished
5. Federer,Beatrix (SBU) vs. Boldridge,Ceara (MWSU) unfinished
6. Jovanovic,Zorana (SBU) vs. Smith,Meara (MWSU) unfinished

Doubles competition
1. Zentai,Christina/Varga,Fanni (SBU) def. El Ghazi,Yasmine/Giraldo,Sarah (MWSU) 8-5
2. Zehnder,Maria Josie/Tuemmers,Lani (SBU) def. Dysart,Kayla/Aguilera,Sofia (MWSU) 8-1
3. Chiao,Denise/Boldridge,Ceara (MWSU) def. Federer,Beatrix/Jovanovic,Zorana (SBU) 8-3

— MWSU Sports Information —

Northwest women’s tennis defeat UCO to advance to MIAA semifinals

Posted on April 25, 2015

The Northwest Missouri State University women’s tennis team beat Central Oklahoma, 5-1, on Friday in the opening round of the MIAA Tournament in Springfield, Mo.

The match, which was played indoors at the Cooper Tennis Complex, was halted after the Bearcats captured the two singles points to clinch the victory.

Northwest swept the three doubles points to take an early lead. Margaux Jaquet and Stephanie Mannix won at No. 3 and No. 5 singles, respectively.

Singles competition
1. Gorina,Alina (UCO) def. #50 Quesada,Camila (NW) 6-4, 6-3
2. Jarolim,Lorena Rivas (NW) vs. Minakova,Anya (UCO) unfinished
3. Jaquet,Margaux (NW) def. Brnovic,Natasa (UCO) 6-0, 6-1
4. Kolen,Aniek (NW) vs. Burak,Olya (UCO) unfinished
5. Mannix,Stephanie (NW) def. Semo,Emilie (UCO) 6-4, 6-0
6. Hull,Marianne (NW) vs. Moyna Lobel,Amelie (UCO) unfinished

Doubles competition
1. Jarolim,Lorena Rivas/Quesada,Camila (NW) def. Minakova,Anya/Moyna Lobel,Amelie (UCO) 9-8
2. Hull,Marianne/Jaquet,Margaux (NW) def. Gorina,Alina/Semo,Emilie (UCO) 8-6
3. Mannix,Stephanie/Kolen,Aniek (NW) def. Burak,Olya/Brnovic,Natasa (UCO) 8-2

Northwest Missouri State will face No. 2 tournament seed Southwest Baptist at 9 a.m. on Saturday morning in Springfield, Mo., in the semifinal round.

— Northwest Sports Information —

Griffons and Bearcats split first two games of series

Posted on April 23, 2015

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – The Missouri Western baseball team started off their final regular season series with a split against Northwest Missouri State. MWSU took game one with a 3-2 win and dropped the second game 2-1.

Game 1 – MWSU 3, Northwest 2

Missouri Western earned the first win of the series in exciting fashion with a 3-2 victory.

The Griffons were first on the board in the second inning as they managed to get three runs on three hits and two errors.

Cosimo Cannella started off the second inning with a double down the right field line. David Glaude singled to the pitcher and eventually advanced to second and put Cannella on third.

Zach Taylor hit a sac fly to left field to score Cannella from third, scoring the Griffons first run of the ball game. Glaude advanced to third on a pass ball and senior Michael Yeager singled to right field to pick up the RBI. Yeager worked himself around the bases to score on a wild pitch to score the third run.

Northwest Missouri scored one run in the fourth inning and one in the seventh inning.

Banks Born moved his record to 6-1 on the season. He went six innings, allowing eight hits and struck out five batters.

Game 2 – Northwest 2, MWSU 1

The Griffons and Bearcats got into a pitching battle in the second game with A.J. Martinez and Joseph Hietpas on the mound. Both teams were held scoreless until the top of the seventh inning when the Bearcats scored two runs.

Nick Gotta was the Bearcats first runner on base when he was walked by Martinez. Two batters later, Paul Johnson came up with a huge two out single to centerfield. Steven Garber singled to centerfield and eventually advanced to second on an error by centerfielder Ryan Degner. The error allowed two-runs to score.

The Griffons only run came from Cosimo Cannella in the bottom of the seventh inning when he hit his fifth home run of the season.

A.J. Martinez suffered his first loss of the season and now has a record of 4-1 on the season.

Missouri Western and Northwest Missouri State will wrap up their four-game series Friday with a doubleheader that begins at 5:00 p.m.

— MWSU Sports Information —

Royals beat White Sox 3-2 in 13 innings after brawl

Posted on April 23, 2015April 24, 2015

CHICAGO (AP) — A benches-clearing fight led to five ejections several innings before Eric Hosmer hit the go-ahead double in the 13th to lead the Kansas City Royals to a 3-2 win over the Chicago White Sox on Thursday night.

With two outs, Hosmer’s hit off Chicago’s Jake Petricka (0-1) brought in Jarrod Dyson. Wade Davis then pitched a scoreless 13th for his fourth save, giving Franklin Morales (2-0) the victory.

Kansas City won for the fourth time in five games in a game in which tempers flared.

In the seventh, Yordano Ventura snagged a grounder from Chicago outfielder Adam Eaton and they appeared to exchange words before Ventura threw to first to end the inning. Eaton had to be restrained from Ventura, who was ejected from a second straight start.

Players from both dugouts and bullpens ran onto the field and punches were thrown during a fight that lasted a couple of minutes.

The play was the culmination of tensions that seemed to rise during the game and carry over from their season-opening series earlier this month when the teams combined to hit six batters. In the bottom of the fourth, Ventura hit Jose Abreu. In the top of the fifth, Chris Sale hit Mike Moustakas.

Ventura was thrown out after the fight. On Saturday, after he allowed a three-run homer to the Athletics’ Josh Reddick, he hit Brett Lawrie and was ejected.

The four others tossed Thursday were Kansas City outfielder Lorenzo Cain and pitcher Edinson Volquez, along with Chicago’s Sale and pitcher Jeff Samardzija.

For Ventura, it was his fourth consecutive start that ended abruptly. Besides the ejections, on opening day against the White Sox he left with a thumb cramp. He was replaced April 12 against the Los Angeles Angels because of a right calf cramp.

Kansas City has been in a fighting mood for a week now.

In that three-game series against Oakland last weekend, the Royals and A’s cleared their benches each day. Nearly as many people were hit by pitches as hit home runs. And five players and coaches were ultimately thrown out of the finale Sunday, when things boiled over.

Among those tossed was reliever Kelvin Herrera, who threw a fastball behind the head of Lawrie, then pointed to his own head in a threatening manner. Herrera was suspended five games for it pending an appeal, a punishment that could have easily been stiffer.

Before the fight, Ventura pitched seven innings and allowed two runs while striking out eight. He also survived a scare in the third when Micah Johnson beat him to first base and accidentally kicked the pitcher’s right leg, though after a couple precautionary tosses the hard-throwing righty stayed in the game.

Sale only gave up two first-inning runs and lasted seven innings and allowed nine hits.

Chicago only had seven hits.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Royals: INF Omar Infante (left groin) was not in the lineup. He left Sunday’s game after suffering the injury and hasn’t appeared since, though manager Ned Yost said “he’s getting to the point where he’s getting ready to play.” . Yost said RHP Greg Holland (right pectoral muscle) will be evaluated Saturday. . RHP Luke Hochevar (right elbow) threw a scoreless inning during a rehab assignment at Triple-A Omaha.

White Sox: Petricka (right forearm) made his debut Wednesday and said he felt “great” before Thursday’s game. “Normal soreness. That’s a great feeling,” Petricka said.

UP NEXT

Royals LHP Danny Duffy (1-0, 5.51) faces White Sox LHP Jose Quintana (1-1, 8.40). Duffy is 1-1 with a 3.72 ERA at U.S. Cellular Field, while Quintana is 0-6 with a 4.66 ERA all-time against Kansas City.

— Associated Press —

Missouri Western softball splits doubleheader against Washburn

Posted on April 23, 2015

ST. JOSEPH – The Missouri Western softball team split a doubleheader with Washburn Thursday to move their record to 33-15 on the year and 17-7 in the MIAA.

GAME 1: Washburn 4, MWSU 3 (9 innings)

The Griffons lost an extra inning game, giving up two runs in the top of the seventh to tie the game and then losing on a solo home run in the top of the ninth.

Leading 3-1 in the seventh, Janie Smith gave up a solo home run to lead off the inning. The next batter reached on an error by Katie Klosterman. Smith retired the next batter with a fly out to center then a single from the next batter put two on with one out. A sacrifice fly brought in Washburn’s second run and tied the game at three.

Bekah Mueller led off the bottom of the seventh with a walk but the next three Griffons were retired to force extra innings. Neither team scored in the eighth and Smith retired the first batter of the ninth with a groundout. Then came the dagger, with a solo home run to right center that put Washburn up 4-3. The first two Griffon batters in the bottom of the ninth grounded out before Brooke Schaben reached on an error. Morgan Rathmann ended it with a ground out to the pitcher.

Washburn scored first with a run in the top of the fifth. The Griffons answered and took the lead with three in the bottom half of the inning.

Smith took the loss, going nine innings and giving up four runs – three earned – on nine hits. She struck out six and walked four. Her record dropped to 16-8 on the year. Rathmann went 2-5 at the plate while Kailey Green was 2-4.

GAME 2: MWSU 9, Washburn 4

The Griffon bats woke up in the second game of the day, getting two runs in the second and four in the third to take a 6-2 lead. MWSU tacked on two more in the sixth and survived a little threat in the top of the seventh to win 9-4.

Washburn jumped out to a 1-0 lead with a solo home run off Shyanne Saladino in the second but an RBI single by Mueller and a sac fly from Rathmann gave MWSU a 2-1 lead after two. Washburn tied it up in the top of the third before the Griffons got four in the bottom of the inning to take a 6-2 lead.

Shelbie Atwell got things started in the third with an RBI single. Then Brooke Schaben pushed a run in with a bases loaded walk. Rathmann and Tiffany Gillaspy followed with RBI singles to give the Griffs a more comfortable lead. Atwell would drive in two more in the fourth with an RBI single and an RBI double. She finished the game 3-4 with three RBIs and a run scored. Rathmann, Gillaspy, Paige Shifflett and Sydney Washington all had two-hit games. Saladino was solid, moving to 17-7 on the season. She went the distance allowing four runs, just one earned, on eight hits.

The Griffons are scheduled to host their final two regular season games on Saturday at 1 p.m. with a doubleheader against Emporia State.

— MWSU Sports Information —

Northwest softball goes 1-1 against Emporia State

Posted on April 23, 2015

The Northwest Missouri State softball team split Thursday’s doubleheader against #20 Emporia State in Maryville.

The Hornets tied game one in the seventh inning before winning in extra innings, 4-3.

The Bearcats won game two, 2-1, on Stephanie Mark’s two-run home run in the first inning.

Northwest is now 22-22 on the year and 14-10 in the MIAA, while Emporia State is now 32-18 this season with a 14-10 mark in the conference.

In game one, Kendle Schieber tallied three base hits and drove in one run on a double in the sixth.
Baylee Scarbrough reached base on a pair of singles and Rebecca Maher drove in two runs on one hit.

Sarah Baldwin took the loss after throwing her 13th complete game this season. The righty gave up four runs on eight hits while striking out six.

In game two, following an unearned run coming around to score for the Hornets in the first, Maher started a two-out rally in the bottom of the inning by driving a double to right center. Then Stephanie Mark drove her in with a soaring home run down the left field line.

Kendle Schieber earned her ninth victory on the year after hurling seven innings of three-hit ball. The junior surrendered just one unearned run in the first inning and struck out eight Hornet batters.

Northwest Missouri State will wrap up play in the regular season on Sunday when they host Washburn at 1 p.m. Before the game, the team will be honoring this year’s seniors.

— Northwest Sports Information —

Wacha out duels Scherzer as St. Louis beats Washington

Posted on April 23, 2015

WASHINGTON (AP) — One of these days, Michael Wacha might be the guy who forces the other team’s starting pitcher to excel.

For now, the St. Louis Cardinals right-hander is having a delightful time trying to outdo the opposing team’s ace.

Wacha got the best of Max Scherzer, Matt Adams singled in the tiebreaking run in the sixth inning and the Cardinals beat the Washington Nationals 4-1 Thursday for their fourth straight series win.

In his previous two starts, Wacha outpitched Cincinnati star Johnny Cueto. This time, he was better than Scherzer — the 2013 Cy Young winner who came in with a sparkling 0.83 ERA.

“You know you’re going to have to go out there and try to match zeros against those guys,” Wacha said.

He did better than that.

Wacha (3-0) allowed one run and five hits in seven innings while lowering his ERA to 1.33. He walked two and struck out six, including Jose Lobaton three times.

“He was great,” manager Mike Matheny said. “I think he’s doing a nice job of not being distracted by who he’s facing.”

Scherzer (1-2) also went seven innings, giving up two runs and six hits. It was the first time in his four starts with Washington that he surrendered more than one earned run.

Scherzer hurt his wrist in the fifth inning while at the plate, but he dismissed the injury as a minor inconvenience.

“I haven’t batted too much and I jammed it a little bit,” the right-hander said. “I look forward to going out there and pitching my next start.”

Nationals first baseman Ryan Zimmerman was slow on the bases, a shortcoming that manager Matt Williams suspected was a minor case of plantar fasciitis.

“He has a little pain in the bottom of his foot,” Williams said. “Been bothering him for a while. Pretty soon we’re going to have to give him a break and sit him down.”

Matt Carpenter had two hits and scored a run for the Cardinals, who have won seven of eight. St. Louis took two of three from the Nationals in a matchup of 2014 division champions and remained unbeaten in series play this year (4-0-1).

Scherzer allowed the first two batters to reach base, then retired 16 of 17 before Jason Heyward singled with two outs in the sixth. The right-hander hit Matt Holliday with a pitch before Adams delivered a single to left for a 2-1 lead.

St. Louis added two runs in the eighth.

Jordan Walden got three outs in the bottom of the inning for the Cardinals and Trevor Rosenthal pitched a perfect ninth for his sixth save.

Facing the Cardinals for the first time since 2009, Scherzer, a St. Louis native, got off to a wobbly start. Carpenter lined the first pitch of the game into center field for a double, moved up on a single by Heyward and scored on a wild pitch.

In the Nationals fifth, Danny Espinosa led off with a double and Scherzer reached when a replay determined that Adams took his foot off first base before taking a throw. Denard Span followed with an RBI single.

With runners on the corners, Wacha retired Ian Desmond on a popup, struck out Bryce Harper and got Zimmerman to ground into a fielder’s choice.

HAVE A SEAT

Cardinals: C Yadier Molina was out of the starting lineup for the first time this season, despite a seven-game stretch in which he had 12 hits and six RBIs. “We had (the non-start) on the calendar a while back,” Matheny said.

Nationals: OF Jayson Werth didn’t play after going 4 for 19 in his previous five games. The slugger is batting .167 with no homers and two RBIs.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Cardinals: OF Peter Bourjos is expected to return from paternity leave on Friday in Milwaukee.

Nationals: OF Anthony Rendon (left knee sprain) worked out the squad before the game and will start a rehabilitation assignment Friday with Double-A Harrisburg.

UP NEXT

Cardinals: RHP Carlos Martinez (1-0, 2.08 ERA) gets his third start of the season Friday night in the opener of a three-game set against the Brewers.

Nationals: Washington sends Jordan Zimmermann and his 6.14 ERA to the mound vs. the Marlins to launch a 10-game road trip that goes through Miami, Atlanta and New York.

— Associated Press —

Central hires Jared Boone as girls’ basketball coach

Posted on April 23, 2015

Central High School has hired Jared Boone as its next girls’ basketball coach.

Boone was the top assistant coach for the Indians the last two seasons under Jessica French, who resigned at the end of the season.

Boone is a St. Joseph native as he graduated from Benton High School. He went on to play college basketball at North Central Missouri College for two years and he finished his career at Lincoln University.

Boone was an assistant coach for the Central boys for one season before moving over to the girls side the last two years.

The Indians went 7-18 last season and 3-7 in Suburban League play, but they’ll bring back a strong nucleus as they had just two seniors on the roster.

Kansas City loses series finale to Minnesota 3-0

Posted on April 22, 2015

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Mike Pelfrey pitched seven scoreless innings to pick up his first victory since 2013 as the Minnesota Twins beat the Kansas City Royals 3-0 Wednesday night.

Joe Mauer reached base four times with two hits and two walks and scored a run.

Pelfrey’s last victory was Sept. 23, 2013, against Detroit. He went 0-3 in five starts last year before undergoing season-ending elbow surgery on June 10.

Pelfrey (1-0) gave up five singles, walked two, hit two batters and struck out four. It was his longest outing since he went seven innings against Texas on Aug. 31, 2013.

Glen Perkins got the last three outs for his third save

Royals starter Jeremy Guthrie (0-1) gave up all three runs and six hits with a career high-tying six walks in five innings.

The Twins scored all their runs in the first on three hits, two walks and a hit batter. Oswaldo Arcia was hit by Guthrie with the bases loaded to bring home Brian Dozier. Kennys Vargas and Dozier singled in the other two runs. Guthrie induced Kurt Suzuki to ground into a double play with the bases loaded to end the inning and prevent further damage.

The Twins loaded the bases in the second on Torii Hunter’s double and walks to Joe Mauer and Dozier. However, Hunter was out trying to steal home to end the inning.

Guthrie did not allow a run after the first, but he was never sharp, throwing only 50 percent strikes in 98 pitches.

Yohan Pino replaced Guthrie and threw three scoreless innings.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Twins: LHP Brian Duensing (right intercostal strain) started soft tossing Wednesday.

Royals: 2B Omar Infante (strained left groin) missed his third straight game. Manager Ned Yost said Infante could have played, but did not want to push him.

UP NEXT

Twins: RHP Phil Hughes (0-3, 5.30 ERA) starts against the Mariners on Friday.

Royals: RHP Yordano Ventura (2-1, 4.80 ERA), fined Tuesday for hitting Oakland’s Brett Lawrie Sunday, starts Thursday against the Chicago White Sox.

— Associated Press —